Destiny class guide: Warlock

Destiny has something for everyone, and if your thing is dishing it out in high style from behind the shield of your allies, the Warlock would like to talk to you.

Destiny is carefully balanced so you can enjoy the game solo, but if you’re interested in co-op, strikes or raids you want to know as much as you can about what roles each class can play in a good fireteam.

The Warlock is a fragile class which can’t survive the frontlines, but has the capacity to deal massive damage, drawn from their study of the Traveller’s mystical energies. In classic fantasy archetypes, the Warlock is the mage. In the “holy trinity”, it serves as main damage dealer.

Playing a Warlock takes skill, because doing heavy damage is easy but avoiding it is harder. The Warlock has much lighter armour than the Titan, and is nowhere near as agile as the Hunter. Skilled Warlocks will know how to avoid threats proactively, not reactively, lobbing their most powerful attacks right into the heart of enemy groups without entering firing zones. As a Warlock, you have a responsibility to use powers wisely – and frequently.

In a co-op situation, the Warlock is a damage dealer, first and foremost. Warlocks don’t have the evasion abilities of the Hunter or the survivability of the Titan, but they’re likely to be doing most of the non-spike damage. It’s up to the other classes to keep their secret weapon safe by managing threat.

Warlock: Equipment

Warlocks and Hunters have a rivalry over which is the best dressed, but the Warlock is stylish from the start. Their distinctive mid-calf length dusters lend them a certain elegance the other classes don’t achieve until they reach higher levels.

On the downside, the Warlock’s class equipment is easy to miss – it’s strapped to the arm. At higher levels it gives off gorgeous effects, like light or even flames.

Warlock: Glide

The Warlock’s mobility ability is called Glide, and of the three classes its movement is the most parallel. This makes it great for getting across long gaps, but it’s not so great for climbing through the environment or evading fire.

That said, the Warlock’s dignified glide definitely has its used, allowing you to fire weapons or powers in mid-air with a much higher chance to hide. Is there anything more majestic then sailing serenely between two pieces of cover, lobbing a grenade at a group of startled enemies? If it really doesn’t suit you, grit your teeth until you can upgrade to a teleport – now that’s useful on the battlefield.

The Glide upgrade tree is identical in both Warlock subclasses:

Glide
Jump and then press X again while in the air to activate Glide.

Focused Control – Upgrades Glide for better directional control while in the air.

Focused Burst – Upgrades Glide to provide an initial boost of speed.

Blink – A short distance teleport which replaces Glide.

Warlock: stat boost upgrade trees

Players can choose just one perk from each of the two stat boost upgrade trees. Although it’s tempting to treat the third perk in each tree as the most powerful, which you should choose depends on your subclass, play style, equipment and build. The two stat boost perks may not seem dramatic, but you can use them to plug a hole in your build, or combine them with other choice to min-max a gameplay loop.

Warlocks are never going to be very happy right up in the enemy’s faces for any length of time, but you could try to buff this aspect up if you find yourself repeatedly downed. or you could push for speed, and hope you do a better job of keeping away from the baddies.